World of Smash
by Gancena
Summary: Self-Insert. Gancena has gone from friend to manager of the Super Smash Brothers. As the Ultimate season rolls on, the many residents of the Smash Estate find themselves closer than ever.
1. 00 -- Gancena

The last few months of Gancena's life were absolutely saturated in restlessness. First there was the wait for the game version of Smash Ultimate, which she could at least count the days for. Then the day came and she found herself and her poor mother literally escaping into the World of Light. Then after the defeats of Galeem and Dharkon, Gancena made a decision to remain part of Smash. But she didn't actually leave home until after New Year's so that her mother would have peace of mind and some time with her.

At the moment, she was scrambling to grab all the last little items she wanted to bring to Smash Mansion, at least for the moment. Everyone was already there. She'd been bringing in bigger items day in and day out since before New Year's. And even though she'd let everyone know she'd be arriving after dark, Gancena felt like she was running late on her first day of work as the new general manager of Super Smash Brothers.

When it was time to go, after the two pups and the kitty were put to bed and her parents had come up to her room to see her off, Gancena pulled up the app on her phone that had started it all: the Multiverse Navigator.

It had simply appeared in there one day, when the pups were actual pups, and it had led her into an interdimensional adventure to find and rescue the cast of the first Super Smash Brothers game from a then-bored and unintentionally callous Master Hand. It was a masterwork, allowing Gancena to enter virtually any world connected to Super Smash Brothers with a few quick taps.

Gancena and Master Hand had struck a deal the day that they met, that Gancena would be responsible for the chosen fighters if they could each complete a set of trials. Of course, the fighters each triumphed, and under Gancena's care, they were granted their freedom.

But the deal had evolved by then to a mutual understanding: Master Hand learned why the people he'd roped in thought it wasn't okay of him to do so, and Gancena and the first twelve Smashers learned why Master Hand thought it was. All their time together concluded in a promise to someday reunite, and to invite more than twice as many people to become Smashers.

That promise would become Melee, then Brawl, then Sm4sh. And now the Ultimate era was about to begin.

There was already a well-used rip in Subspace that led to the office on the highest story of Smash Mansion. That office had belonged to Master Hand and Crazy Hand.

Now it was hers.

Before selecting the rip to go through it, Gancena glanced at her own light tan hands. Since the end of Sm4sh, Smash Brothers logos were forever marked on the palms and backs of her hands, accompanied by noticeable colored lines running from her fingertips to the middle of her biceps, like a set of opera gloves: red on the left, blue on the right. It was a manifestation of what had been left behind. She'd gained great power and greater responsibility when she'd let those marks be fused onto her hands, and both the power and the responsibility were ever-growing…

* * *

The office had needed renovation after its former occupants were gone, and Gancena had done so strategically. She didn't need _all_ the space for an office, but she would need a bedroom of her own. So she built a wall and a doorway between them and, with great care, tugged the Subspace rip to sit squarely in her bedroom's area.

And so that was where she appeared. She sighed deeply once the transportation was complete.

It was fairly bare for the moment, basically having a bed, a closet, some shelves, and an attached bathroom ready to go. Gancena glanced down at all her cargo, slipped her phone back into a pocket, and began to lay it all down. The backpack went on the floor by the bed, the luggage was placed on its back, the toiletries bag went straight to the bathroom… but she'd actually _unpack_ later.

She took a moment to undo and redo her short dark ponytail before checking the time on her phone. She wasn't late at all. She'd be able to give everything a once-over before—

She stopped upon opening the door, caught off-guard by the sight of adorable little Isabelle checking something off a clipboard. All she'd been expecting, really, was the Piranha Plant sitting atop the desk.

"Hey, there you are! You made it!" the Plant said.

Isabelle looked up then. "Oh! Ms. Manager! Good evening!"

"Hi," Gancena managed. "What're you doing up here, Isabelle—Is that my list?"

"Yes. You'd mentioned being worried about getting everything done on time, so I thought I'd go over the tasks you'd set up here!" Isabelle chirped. Then she stopped with a jolt. "But I should have asked permission first." She began to fidget in place. "I'm so sorry! Was it too much of me to do that?"

Gancena smiled, trying not to melt. Even when she was practically dancing in place with worry, she was precious. "No, that's fine. Actually, may I see what you've done?"

Isabelle paused and straightened up. "Yes, you may!" She trotted over, the bells in her hair jingling. She showed the clipboard. Almost everything was checked. Isabelle elaborated: "Everyone's rooms are just as they asked for, the facilities are in working order, and the Mii staff is ready to go! I even got volunteers to help test the SmashComms and the PA system. Everything's working like a charm!"

Gancena sighed. "Isabelle, this is wonderful! I think with all that in order, we can go ahead and finish it all off by having the opening meeting now!"

"That's great, Ms. Manager!"

"But, uh, one thing," Gancena said.

"Yes?"

"You don't have to call me 'Ms. Manager' or anything like that. You can still call me Gancena. I know you're used to doing minutia and being formal, but you're not _my_ secretary. You're one of the fighters. And even more importantly, we're friends first and manager and fighter second."

"Oh! Then I'll keep that in mind… Gancena!" Isabelle said, beaming.

Gancena let a burst of joy bloom in her chest, watching that adorable face. "That being said, I really do appreciate that you did this. I feel like a lot of the remaining weight is off my shoulders. But from now on, I'd better learn to do all this myself. Thanks, Isabelle. Get to the conference room. The meeting will start as soon as everyone is there. You can leave the clipboard on my desk."

"All right, then!" Isabelle said, doing so. "I'll see you at the meeting!" she exclaimed.

Once she'd left the office, gently shutting the door behind her, Gancena turned to address the smiling Piranha Plant. "Petey II, did you have anything to do with this?"

Petey II shrugged. "Nah, but I didn't stop it, either. Isabelle wanted to help, so I let her help. I mean, I know you've been kind of stressing out about the move and opening the season and everything. Speaking of, how were Mom and Dad when you left?"

"They were good, thanks. I mean, you know. Relatively speaking. I mean, I just flew the nest, so."

"At least it isn't their first rodeo. Also, when're the pups coming? People have been asking."

"_After_ the Exhibition. It'd be too chaotic to do it any sooner. I'll be back and forth between here and Mom and Dad's all day tomorrow, and part of that's just for setting up their space." Gancena briefly looked over a sheet of notes she'd made for the meeting. "What about you? Did you find your room okay?"

"Yes, I did. Though I'll probably still be spending some time up here—well, with permission, of course. I'm just real used to hanging around wherever you are."

"Yeah, I get it. It's fine as long as I'm not trying to discuss anything confidential with anyone. You'll know when to scoot, I think." Gancena then approached her desk and observed the PA panel: a spread of buttons and a microphone. She thought over her words and then held the biggest button down. Soft ascending chimes resonated throughout the entire space.

She leaned towards the microphone and said: "Hello, everyone, this is your manager Gancena speaking. I would like everyone to come to the conference room for our first meeting! We'll be going over basic rules for both fighting and living here, our new numbering system, and our first couple of events to kick off the New Year and a new season! I'll see you all real soon." She released the button and grabbed her notes, taking a deep breath as the chimes descended. "And you, Petey, are joining us."

"I'd better be!" said Petey II, hopping down from the desk. "So when's my special introduction anyway?"

"I don't know, other than February, the latest," she said, starting for the door. "The developers haven't given a specific date."

Petey II slightly tugged his flower pot up and toddled alongside her. "Always with the 'developers'... are you the manager or not?"

"I _am!_ I just think there are some things I shouldn't try to force, is all. Plus, it's kinda fun to keep _some_ things a mystery…"


	2. 01 -- Mario

"Ready? Yeah!"

In sync, Mario, Cappy, Gancena, and F.L.U.D.D. swung their Joy-Cons, making the on-screen Mario, Yoshi, Monty Mole, and Goomba high-five with their oars.

"Heckin' nice," Gancena declared. "That was a great run."

Gancena finally sat back down from kneeling as the game of River Survival concluded. "So, uh…" she said. "Do you still have the thing I left with you? Y'know, after it was all over?"

Mario knew what she meant. "Of course I do. Did you want it back now?"

"Yeah, if that's all right. Unless either of you wanted to play more? Cappy?"

Cappy loosened the wrist strap from his Joy-Con. "No, it's fine with me."

"F.L.U.D.D.?"

F.L.U.D.D. laid their Joy-Con down and mimicked Cappy's actions. "We've had a satisfying session of play. I'm fine with going now."

Gancena glanced back at the couch, where her two little dogs were curled up, a pair of brown and white Cavalier spaniels. Zeiva, with a slightly droopy face and a perfect little spot on her head, was awake and staring at Gancena. Lexi, almost completely deaf and a little skinnier with a permanent puppy face, was still asleep, though she'd wake as soon as Zeiva moved. "The pups are probably going to follow me."

"That's all right. They're welcome in my room," said Mario, backing out of the game. "Whenever you're ready, let's-a go."

"Sure," Gancena said, smiling.

Cappy transformed and settled back to his usual place on Mario's head. Mario put the Switch into sleep mode and shut the TV off before taking F.L.U.D.D. onto his back.

"C'mon, pups, we're going," Gancena said to the dogs. Zeiva jumped off the couch, stirring Lexi, who only followed when she saw everyone else was heading for the door of the lounge. The room they were using was one of several private TV and game rooms, all soundproofed areas that led to a bigger general rec room. Music and some chatter poured in when the door opened, and Gancena flicked the lights off once everyone else was out.

* * *

On the opposite side of the same floor of the Mansion, Mario opened the door to his room and the curious dogs quickly entered, immediately setting out to sniff every edge and corner of the furniture.

Mario's room was primarily red, from the carpet to the bedsheets to the curtains to the surface of the desk.

Cappy floated off Mario's head and F.L.U.D.D. was set down in a corner with a small and shallow pool of water, raised just high enough to keep the pups from drinking out of it.

In one of the bookshelves lay the golden metal husk of a dead weapon. When it had power, the lines and the symbol upon it had glowed with all colors. But now it was no longer needed, and so it rested dim and gray.

Gancena took up the empty shell of the Spirit Gun, fitting neatly into both hands and Mario couldn't help but think how different everything was the first time he'd seen her hold it…

* * *

_With a rush of warm light, Mario came to. The first thing he saw was Kirby standing over him, watching intently._

"Kirby?" With a jolt of realization, Mario shoved himself off the ground and hopped to his feet. "Kirby, you're all right!"

Kirby smiled and practically cheered and danced, charging him for a hug with a shout of "Mario!"

"Mario!" said another voice, and Mario looked up in time to catch Gancena dashing towards him in a hug of her own. "It worked! It worked! We can do this!"

"Gancena, you're here!" Mario said. Gancena pulled away, but Kirby held tight, smiling up at them. "So… does this mean that you know what happened?"

"Sort of… I mean…"

Mario then noticed that a few feet behind Gancena was her mother, a kind woman just a touch shorter than Gancena herself, but far less prepared. The dress she was in looked more like a nightgown. She had a shawl around her shoulders and slippers on her feet.

Gancena herself wore one of her graphic tees, one depicting creatures from the Mushroom Kingdom, funnily enough. The bottom of her phone stuck out of a pocket on her soft long pants. She had thick socks but no shoes.

Gancena explained. "The light… it reached even my homeworld. I was lucky enough to be messing around with my phone when I saw it and realized what it was, so I could pull up the Navigator app… but the only other thing I could think to do was grab my mom and pick a random rip. But it didn't matter where I aimed. We just ended up out here, too."

Mario frowned. Gancena had more family and friends and pets in her homeworld. Surely, then… "I'm so sorry."

"…Me too. I wish I could've… done something more."

Kirby bounced from Mario's arm to Gancena's, giving a tiny smile.

Gancena returned it. "But we can fix it all now, just like I thought. And we'll do it together!" She turned to her mother. "Ma-_ma_!" she intoned. "Come see Mario again!"

As Gancena's mother approached, Mario realized that her eyes were red and puffed. He wasn't surprised, but it still hurt to see. "Hello, Gloria."

Gloria managed a smile. "It's nice to see you again, Mario."

"You're all right, then? Neither of you were hurt on the way here?"

"No, no. I just… you know. I still don't really know what's going on, but…"

"But we can fix it, Mama," Gancena reminded. "We know that now."

"Where were you?" Gloria asked. "Did you see anyone else? Did you see your brother?"

Mario shook his head. "No. As far as I know, I've been out this whole time…"

"Oh, I'm so sorry…" she said.

Gancena immediately moved to hug her mother again, and Mario realized Gancena didn't look that much better off. She looked almost like someone running on adrenaline and stress and certainly not sleep. Mario had seen her look like this before, he realized, and he also realized that it might just solve itself.

_Gancena had gotten to a point where she was finally doing something she enjoyed again, even if it wasn't under the happiest of circumstances. That would fuel her enough._

* * *

Gancena looked like the opposite of that now, in some ways. She was absolutely doing something she enjoyed, but now she looked well.

Lexi jumped onto Mario's bed. "Oh! Lexi!"

"No, it's all right," Mario said. "I don't mind at all."

"Okay, good. Some people do." Gancena sighed. "I mean, I got what I came here for, so I guess that…" she trailed off as Zeiva joined her sister, sniffing at the pillowcase and feeling the comforter under their fluffy paws. "Sneef sneef," she said. "Yes, that is Mario's bed. And you are smol. But not as smol as the first time you saw Mario."

Mario smiled. That was true. "They were just little lanky puppies," he said, approaching the bed for them to lift themselves on their hind legs and lick his face. Mario laughed. Gancena beamed.

"Would you freakin' believe we only finally got rid of the baby gates last year?"

"I can, but I have to wonder what the holdup was."

"Anxiety, probably," Gancena admitted. "Mom and I spent the most time with them, and we were always a little worried about what they might get into while we were in different rooms… and then Boots happened and it sort of became a non-issue."

"Yeah," Cappy added. "Cats get everywhere."

The pups settled, sitting on the bed. Mario sat, too, and Lexi immediately climbed onto his lap.

"Hey, Mario," Gancena said quietly. "Did I ever tell you why I picked you first when Master Hand let me bring one of you guys home?"

Mario looked at Gancena. "I don't think so. I didn't really think there was a particular reason."

"Well, there was. There's so much stuff in all the worlds that it can be hard for some people to handle. But that's never, ever been a problem for you. When Master Hand first took you, you only ever saw your battles until I came to get you, right? But when I explained what happened, you took it well. Barely even questioned it. I mean, there were questions, but you didn't doubt me. You just went right along. And I appreciate that. It was already hard to try and explain one side of it to Mom and Dad and the other side of it to people who were worried about you and the other original Smashers, y'know? But you sort of… pulled it all together without really trying."

"Ah, well," Mario said. "I've-a seen a lot. And there's a lot more to see."

"This is absolutely true," Gancena agreed. "But, uh… see, there's more I wanna say."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Go on."

"My first gaming love was Pokemon, but you and your brother have been staple figures in gaming for longer than I've been _alive_. Sometimes you were even the critical thread that kept it all thriving. And… once… you saved my life."

Mario, Cappy, and F.L.U.D.D. looked intently at Gancena. Of course she was going to elaborate, and Mario could tell by the solemn look on her face, gazing towards nowhere, that it was a heavy thing she was about to admit.

"Come to think, I don't think I've told anyone in the Mansion this story because I never really thought it was important. At least, not anymore… but… Well, actually, it was Paper Mario, but it's still… you, you know. You understand how alternate universes work."

"I do. Go on."

"Super Paper Mario… that was what the game's called back home. I believe I've put it in the game library, actually. But, uh… the summer I beat it… It was before my last year of high school, and I was dreading the hell out of it. And… that was on top of some other stuff that I honestly can't even really remember. But… I was tired. So… I wanted to die."

Mario's heart panged, but he held his tongue. Gancena wasn't finished.

"I wasn't entirely sure how I was going to do it, but I had a couple ideas. All I knew was that I wanted to be gone at the end of the summer so I could at least have a last hurrah before escaping. But I was playing that game all summer, and I beat it during the last week of the summer. And, well… it's a tale of love. In general. All kinds of love, though it's a simple lovers' vow that ultimately saves all worlds. And, well… it moved me. It moved me enough to decide to stay. I mean, I still struggled. A lot. But…" she finally looked at Mario. "I made it."

Mario gently moved Lexi from his lap, laying her down squarely on his bed. When Mario rose and approached Gancena, Lexi followed.

Mario placed his hand on Gancena shoulder and looked her in the eye. "I'm glad you did." He hugged her tightly, the way she liked best. "I'm-a very sorry you ever felt that way, but I'm-a so glad you stayed. We couldn't ask for a better person to succeed the Hands."

Gancena returned the hug immediately. "Thank you, Mario. That means a lot, coming from you. …More than I can explain, really."

Cappy landed gently on Gancena's head, stroking her hair. "I haven't known you for as long, but I know that I feel the same way. Thanks for staying, Gancena."

"I, too, agree," F.L.U.D.D. chimed in. "You have been a true friend to everyone in this Mansion for a long time."

Gancena soaked it all in. "It really, really means a lot, hearing all this from you. All I ever wanted was to matter to people who mattered to me."

"But you matter no matter what," Mario reminded. "Never forget that, okay?"

* * *

_PSA: When I first wrote this chapter, I had no idea I was going to be talking about suicidal ideations. I really didn't._

_The feelings that cause suicidal ideations may vary, but they are all very real and they are all very complicated. If you ever, ever feel like you no longer want to exist, or that you really do want to die, I sincerely urge you to confide in someone you love and trust. And if you can't think of anyone like that? Search the Internet for help. Call hotlines, text hotlines, messaging… it's all out there. I promise it is. There is someone out there who wants you to keep going, even if you don't think you want to._

_I am not a professional; I'm just one of way too many who've felt this way, so I may not be the best person to reach out to. But I do understand how someone might come to that point. And I urge you to do something, talk to someone, ideally before it gets to that point._

_Stay determined, everyone._


End file.
